Images have now surfaced online of an iPhone 5s prototype in ‘black and gray.’ This is notable as Apple never released the iPhone 5s in this colorway. While it remains to be seen why the company didn’t, the color option makes for an interesting view of how the phone would have looked if Apple did. Although it doesn't look that much different to the standard iPhone 5, that may have been the point.
The iPhone 5s was released in the second half of 2013 along with the iPhone 5c. Both of which arrived almost one year after the standard iPhone 5. While the iPhone 5s offers a limited and basic smartphone experience by today’s standards, it didn’t at the time. When Apple announced the new 5s, the company argued it was “the most forward-thinking smartphone in the world.” This was mainly due to it featuring the A7 chip, making the iPhone 5s a powerful option and the world’s first 64-bit smartphone.
A recent Tweet by the Dongle account reveals images of what’s said to be an iPhone 5s prototype in slate gray. The images show the device from multiple angles and the account states it was manufactured months after the release of the standard iPhone 5. The official 2013 announcement from Apple confirmed the only colors the iPhone 5s was released in were gold, silver and space gray. In addition, the images also show other top and bottom differences compared to the final product.
Why Apple Never Released This iPhone 5s Color
Without an official comment from Apple, it remains to be seen why the slate gray iPhone 5s was never released. However, the standard iPhone 5 colors might help explain why this prototype exists to begin with. For example, Apple’s iPhone 5c was announced at the same event as the iPhone 5s and went on sale in either blue, green, pink, yellow or white. In contrast, the standard iPhone 5 model was previously launched in just the ‘white and silver’ and ‘black and slate’ (shown above) color options.
As the Tweet suggests, this iPhone 5s was likely designed to conceal the identity of the device. Considering a ‘black and slate’ iPhone 5 already existed, and was the current iPhone at the time, anyone seeing the prototype in passing might have easily mistaken it for the standard iPhone. Thereby keeping the identity of the then-unreleased phone a secret up until Apple announced the device and confirmed color options. If this is the reason, then it is also likely the case that Apple never intended to release a slate gray iPhone 5s, even if it is one consumers would have happily purchased.
Source: Dongle/Twitter